Last weekend, Sigga, Beta and Elín won Iceland’s national final Söngvakeppnin with their song “Með hækkandi sól”. But now the full voting figures have revealed that the sisterly trio did NOT win the first round at the grand final.

Icelandic broadcaster RÚV has released the full voting figures of Söngvakeppnin 2022, showing a difference in favourites between the two grand final voting rounds.

The hip hop group Reykjavíkurdætur won the first round with their song “Turn This Around”. The act was the favourite of both Icelandic televoters and the expert jury.

Five of the seven judges ranked “Turn This Around” as their favourite song. The overall winning song “Með hækkandi sól” was less popular with jurors in the first round. Only two ranked it as their top pick, however three had it ranked second.

After the first round, the Reykjavíkurdætur were in the lead with 45,757 votes, while Sigga, Beta & Elín were closely behind with 42,224.

In the superfinal, it was up to Icelandic televoters alone to decide the winner. There, voters gave Sigga, Beta & Elín and additional 35,156 votes, while the Daughters of Reykjavik had an extra 23,470. Added to the first round voting, this was enough to put Sigga, Beta & Elín in the lead with a total of 77,380 and give them the ticket to Turin. Reykjavíkurdætur were second with 69,227.

Söngvakeppnin 2022 – grand final first round voting

  Televote Jury Total
Reykjavíkurdætur -“Turn This Around” 26,320 19,437 45,757
Sigga, Beta & Elín -“Með hækkandi sól” 24,083 18,141 42,224
Amarosis – “Don’t You Know” 12,506 11,921 24,427
Stefán Óli – “Ljósið” 9126 13,476 22,602
Þaðan af -“Katla” 5972 15,031 21.003

Is the Söngvakeppnin superfinal cursed?

If history is anything to go by, it’s not a good sign when the winner of the Söngvakeppnin superfinal is different from the winner of the first round of voting.

Since the voting breakdown was first revealed in 2014, whenever the first round winner has not gone on to also win the superfinal, this act has failed to qualify for the grand final at Eurovision.

María Ólafsdóttir, Greta Salóme and Ari Ólafsson didn’t win the first grand final round of voting in their years, but got to Eurovision by winning the superfinal. All three acts didn’t manage to qualify for the Eurovision grand final.

Conversely, Pollapönk, Hatari and Daði og Gagnamagnið all won both the first voting round and the superfinal in the years they competed. All three acts qualified for the Eurovision grand final — and gave Iceland its best Eurovision results since the 2000s.

The one exception is Svala. In 2017, she won both Söngvakeppnin voting rounds with her song “Paper”. However, despite being a local hit, European audiences didn’t share the enthusiasm and the song didn’t make it out of its semi-final in Kyiv.

Fans have criticised the Söngvakeppnin semi-final for using a voting system that isn’t on offer at Eurovision itself. The superfinal system allows voters to change their minds or even vote “against” a disliked act — something that doesn’t apply at Eurovision.

Sigga, Beta and Elín will perform “Með hækkandi sól” in the second half of the first semi-final in Turin this May.

What do you think? Should Söngvakeppnin stop using the superfinal? Or does it make for a more interesting national final? Tell us your thoughts below!

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BadWoolfGirl
BadWoolfGirl
2 years ago

You know, I was always wondering how the wildcard qualifier gets picked for the final, so I took a look at the results of the last three editions of Söngvakeppnin and discovered that it’s not as random as it appears. What really happens is that the organizers look at the third place finishers in both semi finals and choose the one that has more votes to the final. 2019: Ég á mig sjálf (4,779) vs Þú bætir mig (3,519) 2020: Ævintýri (3,651) vs Ekkó (5,905) 2022: Don’t You Know (7,006) vs Hækkum í botn (4,170) As you can see above,… Read more »

Kristin
Kristin
2 years ago

When are you reacting to the song???

Lundibleu
Lundibleu
2 years ago

What is “controversial” about this? We see superfinals or similarly named things across a lot of NFs – hello MGP & CVQD for two examples – and it’s the same. If a favourite doesn’t win then it’s a bad system for the fans, whereas anyone else thinks it’s fine.

There’s lots of oddities in NF scorings – Spain giving the juries a greater percentage than demoscopic or public, or Australia’s system. It makes it more fun in a way rather than all being identikit

efafaeff
efafaeff
2 years ago

off topic: sigga betta and elin changed their name to : Systur

One of the things i loved the most about them is their names and they ruined it
im kinda mad but still happy they won

Regina Phalange
Regina Phalange
2 years ago

I’m surprised Katla came last, I thought it was good

Doris
Doris
2 years ago

So maybe it could be a good idea to have a superfinal in eurovision. We could have been spared TOY victory and get FUEGO instead.

Tete
Tete
2 years ago

Looking at 2020 and (especially) 2019 I think the Daughters problem was their fan base may have thought it was already won and didn’t vote again (and more) as well as them not picking up new votes from the 3 eliminated acts.

Their number of votes DROPPED 11% between the two rounds (26320 to 23470). In contrast the sisters went up 46%

To compare in 2019 Hatari got a 31% uplift compared to 106% for Friðrik Ómar. So they also had an ‘anyone but Hatari’ vote working against them but they got the votes twice & more from their supporters.

efafaeff
efafaeff
2 years ago
Reply to  Tete

well apart from that, i think there is another reason
in the first round voters had 5 choices
but in thge super final, katl’as stefan’s and amarosis’s voters had to cs\hoose between daughters or sisters
since they couldnt vote for their favourites, bc they were eliminated

ESC Stan
ESC Stan
2 years ago
Reply to  efafaeff

I was going to make that point but thought to check if someone did first. You’re right, votes were disperse because people were eliminated. Its interesting what results any NF if they reset the votes like some do.

poe-tay-toe chips
poe-tay-toe chips
2 years ago

I’ll be honest. I struggle to see Iceland qualifiying this year with ANY of the options they had

BadWoolfGirl
BadWoolfGirl
2 years ago

Actually, I think Katla would have been Iceland’s best chance to qualify but she choked in the final (and it wasn’t as popular as the other acts).

Amanda Britten
Amanda Britten
2 years ago
Reply to  BadWoolfGirl

to be fair she was recovering from COVID before the performance, hence the raspy vocals

celemin09
celemin09
2 years ago

I mean, they were asking for it: “Turn this around”. And voters did

Ffgsg
Ffgsg
2 years ago

Can someone tell me how many recaps were there? 😀 I suspect there were like 10 ( I didn’t fully watch the show)

Ffgsg
Ffgsg
2 years ago

They made a mistake
You guys gave padan and as the artist and katla as the song

Anyway its shocking seein her last
And amarosis being third in all shows

Run to the Mountains
Run to the Mountains
2 years ago

Iceland could do an internal selection next year. It worked very well last year

Denis
Denis
2 years ago

It is weird voters changed their mind but the song isnt too bad. I find it rather enjoyable, like an Icelandic First Aid Kit. I doubt it will do as well as last year but I like it

willchrisiam
willchrisiam
2 years ago
Reply to  Denis

Maybe their favorites got knocked out and they simply voted for the one they liked better from the two remaining songs…

The Voice of Reason
The Voice of Reason
2 years ago

The daughters would have easily completed the three year cycle of chaos and madness. This song chosen instead is boring. The results seem VERY fishy to me…and they didn’t reveal these results until now? You’re kidding me.

Paul
Paul
2 years ago

They reveal the results a few days after the final every year. And its not fishy, Reykjavikurdaetur was very “controversial”, so you love it or hate it. Everyone who loved it voted for it in the first round, who did not like it voted for someone else. So, in the second round, the voters of the 3 other acts vote for Systur, because they are the ones who did not like Turn this around.
Stop making conspiracies out of absolutely logical things.

Robert
Robert
2 years ago

Let me just say and spare me the hate but it’s not Icelands year.. 3 amazing years back to back if you count the first song by Dadi too which would’ve likely won Eurovision in 2020..

Last edited 2 years ago by Robert
Colin
Colin
2 years ago
Reply to  Robert

He can still count in general quality and reception. And while some say that Iceland would have won, some say Lithuania, some say Switzerland, some say Bulgaria, and some say Russia. Which would it be we’ll never know. But I would be thrilled to have a video compilation of 2020 edited for one of the ”Eurovision again” editions, so that we can at least crown a symbolic winner to fandom.

Jimmy
Jimmy
2 years ago
Reply to  Colin

It would be nice indeed. Who would you vote for, Colin?

Colin
Colin
2 years ago
Reply to  Jimmy

Switzerland and Italy! 😉 You, Jimmy?

Jimmy
Jimmy
2 years ago
Reply to  Colin

My votes would have gone to the Netherlands, Iceland, Ukraine, Italy, Lithuania, Sweden, Israel, Switzerland, and Germany! 🙂

It was a strong year for Eurovision, but they’re the ones I particularly still listen to. I do think Iceland would have won had it been a normal year, and if it had gone ahead in the pandemic I think Italy probably would have taken it.

Jimmy
Jimmy
2 years ago
Reply to  Robert

I know exactly what you mean, Robert. Dadi was massively popular, created a viral hit and certainly won social media. Think About Things is undeniably an amazing entry in the Eurovision song catalogue—whether it competed or not, it’s still part of Eurovision.

At any rate, you can count whatever you goddamn like! 😉

Anoni
Anoni
2 years ago

I find it kind of weird how Hatari won the first round AND the superfinal but for some reason the Daughters of Reykjavik didn’t when their song was a lot more… Well-behaved and calmer, for better words (and I’m saying this as someone who loved Hatari). It just seems contradictory to me, but I guess maybe Icelanders were feeling softer this year or smth. That, or people all around Europe just seem to have some kind of vendetta towards rap songs…And, no, I don’t think the song was too “messy”, it’s a hype song but it still has a solid… Read more »

apollinischesprinzip
apollinischesprinzip
2 years ago

not people thinking that the daughters had any chance of qualifying at eurovision…

on the other hand, the sisters are in my eyes a lock qualifier… locals love a good folk song.

apollinischesprinzip
apollinischesprinzip
2 years ago

like the juries would give 0 points to daughters + they’d get some televote points but mostly from nordic countries and that’s it.

The Voice of Reason
The Voice of Reason
2 years ago

They would have won the televote in their semi final.

Colin
Colin
2 years ago

Personally, I liked Ari’s song more than Svala’s, even if none of them was terrible. I think that Iceland didn’t have a truly bad song in the 21st century.

Colin
Colin
2 years ago
Reply to  Colin

That’s okay. 🙂 I wouldn’t go as far as calling Our Choice a great song or anything of the sort. It’s quite standard for what it’s going for. It also commits the cardinal sin among Eurofans, and that’s being dated. I’m personally usually less bothered by whether the song sounds current or not, as being current has a date of expiring and quality doesn’t. But, yeah, this isn’t an example of a great vintage song at all. It’s just that Ari is kinda cute. Svala isn’t half-bad either. I just wasn’t able to connect much. Greta is in my top… Read more »

Doris
Doris
2 years ago

A tournaround. Iceland just followed what the Spice Girls travesty told. Turn this around AHAH.

Leendert Jan
Leendert Jan
2 years ago

This is a nonsense post. More people who voted for other songs in the first round voted for the three sisters in the second than they did for Reykjavikurdaetur. They did not change their mind. There are several countries which have superfinals and I’ve not read this kind of opiniated posts about them.

Colin
Colin
2 years ago

Sigga, Beta & Elin’s song will be higher on my personal list than Daughters of Reykjavik would’ve been, but I think that picking DoR would give them a higher chance to actually qualify. Greece, Portugal, and Croatia all have slower songs sung by women in the same half of the semi. Portugal’s is also based on a calm atmosphere, and Croatia’s also has a bit of a country-pop vibe. Still, musically, Iceland picked my favorite out of all Songvakeppnin finalists.

The Voice of Reason
The Voice of Reason
2 years ago
Reply to  Colin

I don’t think this song they’ve chosen will stand out.

Colin
Colin
2 years ago

Me neither, but it’s still a nice one. The thing that might make it be noted is the lovely Icelandic language.

Kosey
Kosey
2 years ago

Personally, I would much prefer that the people of a country select their Eurovision entrant, so I actually quite like their voting system.

Astdis
Astdis
2 years ago

I think this system is very weird and there is no need for a superfinal. The people that voted for the other songs in the final decided they would rather want a melodic song to go instead of the rap song from RVKdætur. I’m not usually a fan of them, but the song was catchy, memorable and grew on me. Med hækkandi sól is very melodic and a nice song, but it won’t stand out in Eurovision and it will fade away unless they do some changes to the staging to make it more memorable and tell the story that… Read more »

Ben
Ben
2 years ago

Personally I think they made the wrong choice.

Chelsea
Chelsea
2 years ago

I absolutely love this song. Beautiful, hypnotic. On my playlist and can’t stop playing it.

Eurovision fan
Eurovision fan
2 years ago

After 3 crazy years at Eurovision I think the country on fire should take a rest this year, and they did.

Þórir
Þórir
2 years ago

Nobodys changing their minds, the folks who voted for the other songs just mostly flocked to Sigga Beta and Elín.

YEAH YEAH, FIRE
YEAH YEAH, FIRE
2 years ago

Sorry but this smells so bad. Iceland announced that this year it will be different and only one round of voting will be planned. Then in the final they announced the two superfinalist and we were like ummm???. Sorry but a superfinal of 2 entries should be remove of all national finals because when you have one fan favorite, that its controversial like Daughters of Reykjavik, they moves positive and negative comments, so it’s obviously they were winning the first round but in the second all the haters, all the Icelandic people more traditional that doesn’t want that polemic entry… Read more »

The Voice of Reason
The Voice of Reason
2 years ago

Really doesn’t make too much sense that the jury and televote would completely and literally ‘turn around’. I really don’t like this system, it doesn’t work for the grand final. Iceland should have picked the daughters. This is a sweet song but it doesn’t stand out. A NQ from me.

Polegend Godnova
2 years ago

makes sense. people who had voted for stefan, katla and amarosis all flocked to vote for sigga, beta & elín as it was more similar to their previous favorite.

The Voice of Reason
The Voice of Reason
2 years ago

The people i’ve heard from would have chosen the daughters as their second favourite after said acts.

LaVoixCZ
2 years ago

“Voters changed their minds” “Fans have criticised the Söngvakeppnin semi-final for using a voting system that isn’t on offer at Eurovision itself. The superfinal system allows voters to change their minds or even vote “against” a disliked act — something that doesn’t apply at Eurovision.” ummm, that’s democracy? the superfinal duels are the best thing cause the winner always gets more than 50 % support. The only change to consider is to annul votes from the first round. More countries should use this system. Sigga, Beta and Elín went over majority of votes, get over it. Reykjavíkurdætur had just 29,3… Read more »

The Voice of Reason
The Voice of Reason
2 years ago
Reply to  LaVoixCZ

In a democracy you aren’t being allowed to change your vote after you’ve cast it,

Jonas
Jonas
2 years ago

Yes, you are. The French Presidential election, for example.

Azaad
Azaad
2 years ago
Reply to  Jonas

This is the perfect analogy for the super final!

The Voice of Reason
The Voice of Reason
2 years ago
Reply to  Jonas

Well that’s not moral. That’s not what a democracy stands for.

LaVoixCZ
2 years ago

where are you from please? this system is usual in democratic countries. for example in the czech republic we vote a president like that or members of the upper house of parliament based on 81 districts, if candidate does not have over 50 % in the first round, the second one happens one week later and the two with the biggest amount of votes are advancing. Probably best system would be a single transferable vote used for example in Australia where you put preferences. To very simplify it, the least favourite, in this case Katla, would get eliminated in the… Read more »

Last edited 2 years ago by LaVoixCZ
Jimmy
Jimmy
2 years ago

The Voice: “In a democracy you aren’t being allowed to change your vote after you’ve cast it,” Jonas: “Yes, you are. The French Presidential election, for example.” The Voice: “Well that’s not moral. That’s not what a democracy stands for.” I think perhaps some meaning is being lost or confused in translation. You can’t change a vote that has already been cast in any democratic system—what Jonas means is that some systems have secondary votes, or run-off votes, where you cast an additional vote in the same electoral process, at which point you can change your mind about who you… Read more »

YEAH YEAH, FIRE
YEAH YEAH, FIRE
2 years ago
Reply to  LaVoixCZ

No, that’s not democracy because they are not voting for Sigga, Beta and Elín, they are voting against Daughters of Reykjavik, and in Eurovision you don’t have duels, this doesn’t have sense and is the problem of the Superfinals with only 2 entries, its like flip a coin. Turn This Around follows the wake of the previous icelandic entries since 2019, originals and with personality and they now have a very bland song, if the qualify it’s because they’re in the weakest semi

Jonas
Jonas
2 years ago

Robyn, I think there might be a glitch in the moderation system. Sometimes comments go into the queue, but can be seen by everybody anyway. Also, there are four or five comments in the Emma Muscat article by somebody called Rich – these comments include an upsetting homophobic slur. If the system doesn’t even block that word, something is wrong. They have been there for over a day now, so it’s probably too late for that article, but I would like to think it won’t happen again. I don’t mean this as a complaint, I’m just trying to be constructive.… Read more »